Windsor City FC (formerly Windsor Border Stars, Windsor Stars, and Windsor TFC) is a Canadian soccer team, based in Windsor, Ontario, that plays in League1 Ontario. The club was founded in 2004 and has previously competed in the Canadian Professional Soccer League (CPSL) and Canadian Soccer League (CSL). Throughout their tenure in the CPSL/CSL, Windsor won two Open Canada Cups, one American Indoor Soccer League (AISL) Championship, and maintained a status of regular playoff contender. Around the 2008 CSL season, the club faced financial and player commitment problems which resulted in the league revoking the franchise. In 2011, former Windsor and CSL Defender of the Year Filip Rocca was granted a franchise and brought back Windsor to compete in the Canadian Soccer League. Following the de-sanctioning of the CSL by the Canadian Soccer Association the club joined the newly formed League1 Ontario in 2014. The team plays their home games at the St. Clair College. The team's colours are red and white.
The club debuted on June 5, 2004 in a match against Toronto Croatia, and won the match by a score of 1–0 with the goal from Errecalde.[citation needed] Windsor finished third in the Western Conference, and clinched a postseason berth in its debut season. Their opponents in the first round of the playoffs were Toronto Croatia, but they were eliminated from the playoffs by a score of 5–0.[3]
Windsor's biggest achievement came in capturing the Open Canada Cup, where they faced Ottawa St. Anthony Italia. Errecalde scored the lone goal for Windsor, but Ottawa equalized and the match went into penalties where Windsor prevailed by winning the shootout.[4] At the CPSL awards banquet Justin Marshall was awarded the CPSL Defender of the Year, while Hilton received the CPSL Coach of the Year.[citation needed]
During the winter of 2004/2005 Windsor competed in the American Indoor Soccer League for the indoor season. In their debut season in the AISL the club won the AISL Championship by defeating Cincinnati Excite by a score of 4–1. In preparation for the 2005 CPSL season, Hilton strengthen the squad with the signings of Jaman Tripoli, and Radek Papiez. The Border Stars managed to defend their Open Canada title by defeating London City 3–0.[citation needed] In the regular season the team finished third in the Western Conference, and faced Oakville Blue Devils in the postseason. The result of the match concluded in a 3–1 defeat to Windsor.[citation needed] At the conclusion of the season Aaron Byrd won the CPSL Golden Boot as the league's highest goalscorer, and while Filip Rocca won the CPSL Defender of the Year.[citation needed]
For the 2006 season, the CPSL renamed itself the Canadian Soccer League (CSL), and the International and National divisions were created to replace the Western, and Eastern Conferences. Windsor transferred from the Western Conference to the National Division. In preparation for the 2006 CSL season, Windsor acquired the services of former NPSL players Worteh Sampson, Dominic Scicluna, and Will Kletzien.[5] The season marked an end to Windsor's run as Open Canada Cup champions as the Border Stars suffered a quarterfinal loss to Ottawa St. Anthony Italia.[citation needed] In the regular season Windsor managed to secure the final playoff berth in the National Division. In the first round of the postseason Windsor faced Oakville and avenged their previous quarterfinal loss with a 2–1 victory with goals from Sampson, and Kletzien.[citation needed] In the next round the Border Stars faced division champions the Serbian White Eagles, but suffered a 6–1 defeat.[citation needed] For the second year in a row Rocca was awarded the CSL Defender of the Year.[citation needed]
Original Border Stars logo (2004–08)
In 2007 Windsor experienced roadblocks as the team sometimes failed to assemble enough substitutes for their away matches. The team persevered and managed to clinch the final playoff berth. The club faced the White Eagles and failed to advance after a 2–1 defeat.[citation needed] The following season the Border Stars experienced the same problem of having a shortage of reserves for away matches. As a result, the season was a battle between St. Catharines Wolves and Windsor for the final postseason berth. St. Catharines clinched the final berth by conceding fewer goals than Windsor, thus marking the first time in Windsor's history that it did not make the playoffs. On April 25, 2009, the CSL revoked the Windsor franchise after they failed to meet their financial obligations.[6]
Windsor Stars logo (2011–16
In early 2011, the league announced that former Border Star defender, Filip Rocca, was awarded a franchise and would resurrect the club in Windsor. The Border Stars were renamed the Windsor Stars Pro Soccer and returned to the CSL for the 2011 season. Rocca pledged to build strong connections with the local soccer community and district association, the Essex County Soccer Association, in order to avoid the failure that led to the Border Stars folding. The club owes its history and its name to the Windsor Stars of the 1970s and the Windsor Wheels of the 1980s from the Canadian National Soccer League, the predecessor of the CSL.[7]
The team was re-launched with two head coaches, Steve Vagnini and Jeff Hodgson, who were announced in February 2011.[8][9] Windsor brought back veterans Byrd, Anthony Santilli, Gino Berardi, and signed Canadian international Stephen Ademolu. The club finished the regular season second to last in the league with a record of 3-19-4, and missed out on the playoffs. In the 2012 season, the team began with a slow start, but later managed an eight-game undefeated streak and finished fourth in the overall standings, qualifying for their firsts postseason since the 2007 CSL season. However, Windsor did not make it out of the first round after a 1–0 defeat to York Region Shooters.[citation needed] Steve Vagnini was awarded the CSL Coach of the Year on November 25, 2012.[citation needed]
Windsor managed to secure another playoff berth in 2012 after finishing sixth in the overall standings. Again their playoff run was short-lived after they lost 2–0 to Toronto Croatia.[citation needed] Following the de-sanctioning of the CSL by the Canadian Soccer Association in 2013,[10] the Windsor Stars Pro Soccer Club was announced as one of the 10 teams participating in the inaugural season of League1 Ontario, a newly formed competition in the third division of Canadian soccer, on April 8, 2014.[11] With home games being played at McHugh Park in Windsor, the club sought funding to turn the field into a stadium with proper seating and scoreboard to boost interest in the area.[12]
Windsor TFC logo
In June 2016, it was announced that Windsor would be enter a partnership with Toronto FC of Major League Soccer. The partnership makes Windsor a satellite club to Toronto FC, and its name was changed to "Windsor TFC".[13] In 2023, the club re-branded its League1 Ontario teams as Windsor City FC, while the youth teams will retain the Windsor TFC name, as they retain their association with the professional club.[14]
Prior to 2016, before the Windsor Stars and Toronto FC's partnership was established, the academy team players were competing locally in the Windsor Essex County District Soccer League playing for Ciocaro Soccer Club. During their time as Ciocaro, they found themselves on top of the league every year. At the end of the 2014 season, the basis of the academy team changed from playing locally, to playing in high level tournaments throughout Ontario. The team went by the name of Windsor VH Academy, and for two years, they competed in tournaments only, and enjoyed a great deal of success. In 2016, the affiliation between the Windsor Stars and Toronto FC was confirmed, and VH Academy took over the under 18 academy team. This meant that they would be competing in the Level three division for the following season. By the start of the 2017 season, Windsor TFC had established three more teams to compete throughout Ontario, an under 16 boys team playing in Level three, an under 14 boys team playing in the S.A.A.C league, and an under 12 team competing in the S.A.A.C league.
In 2016, when the now under 18 academy team was still playing as Windsor VH, they enjoyed a very successful campaign throughout the nine tournaments and various exhibition games they competed in. They finished the 2016 year with a record of 26 wins, 13 losses, 7 ties, 116 goals for and 68 goals against, winning five out of the nine tournaments they entered as well as reaching the final on one occasion, including the Henderson Tournament and the Ontario Cup.
The next season would end up being the academy's first year under the Windsor TFC title. They began the year in style, going 23 games undefeated to begin the season, with 22 wins and 1 draw. This set the tone for the rest of the year where they easily won the level three league title. Clenching it with three games remaining, and eventually winning the league by seven points. This means that for the 2018 season, the under 18 boys would be promoted to the level 1 division. They competed in five tournaments during the 2017 season where they won on two occasions and reached the final on another two. They were also able to make it to the quarter final of the Tier 1 Ontario Cup. They finished the 2017 regular season with a record of 25 wins, 5 losses, 4 draws, 101 goals for and 29 goals against.
At the end of the 2017 season, it was announced that Windsor TFC would be taking over the L3 district program in Windsor for girls and boys born between 2003 and 2005. This meant that for the upcoming 2018 season, Windsor TFC will have a total of 8 clubs competing in Ontario, boys and girls under 13, under 14 and under 15 teams, as well as boys teams in the under 17 and under 18 age groups. Windsor TFC will continue to grow its program so that kids throughout Windsor can have access to the training and coaching they need to play at a high level. They are consistently hosting development camps and clinics with different high level coaches from places like Toronto FC, or various universities where kids are able to train with the best and get identified based on their skill.
Notable former players
The following players have moved through the Windsor Stars or TFC program to become professional players, or played professionally before joining the team. Players in bold have senior international caps.
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↑ "CSL gives boot to Border Stars". April 15, 2016. Archived from the original on April 15, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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